Oregon legislators heard testimony for and against the proposed Columbia River Crossing at the first legislative committee hearing on the subject.

Gov. John Kitzhaber and other proponents of the Columbia River Crossing told legislators that Oregon must seize a unique opportunity to secure the $3.4 billion project to replace the seismically unstable, congested Interstate 5 Bridge. "If we fail to act in 2013, it's very likely that other national projects will move up in the queue and come in ahead of us," Kitzhaber said.

But opponents described the span, which would include light rail and elaborate freeway interchanges, as a badly designed project that would worsen congestion.